The Fire That Conspires Against Us

Let me start by saying that blogging morale has been at an all time low.  An anticipated pay cut should spark some serious austerity measures here at FE headquarters, and the first budget casualty is, of course, vinyl purchases.  Then there's mediafire, which rages McCarthy-like in its pursuit to erroneously shut down the very users who bring the site its traffic.  My account was suspended after receiving a couple of demerits (school discipline terms both intentional and inadvertent), the offending straw being a Damnable Excite Zombies/Amen split that was somehow mistaken for a Dragonball Z© file!  I'm not going to fight it. Nor am I going to let this dampen my spirits any further.  I'm returning to 4-Shared, and while it makes you wait for your download, at least there aren't those ridiculous pop-ups giving zippyshare a shot at handling downloads.  The last few posts have been re-upped.  If there is/are any tunes you missed out on, contact me through comments or e-mail, and I'll re-up it/them for you. I'll keep the rest of this post upbeat, as I have good news, and yes, some freebies.

First, a generous lad, Ryan, offered high-quality CD rips of all three Institute releases, and being no fool, I took him up on it.  All three are available for download below, and he even included graphics.  I was also stoked to hear that Ryan has joined the ranks of us bloggers with an outlet specializing in hardcore/punk bands which employ cello and/or violin.  I've already discovered some kick-ass bands, and revisited some old favorites.  Make sure you head over and say hey, and maybe drop some requests.

Blog -- Crust With Strings

Institute CD Rips:

"Two Shadows"

"The Piano Player"

"13 Planets"

On to a request of our own: an anonymous blog buddy was looking for former Distraught rockers, Sangre de los Puercos, and I'm sorry I delayed this long (rough month).  While I like the overall noise SDLP make, and love their lyrics, something about the drums or drum production leaves me cold.  I don't know, maybe you'll like them more.  I do, however, have no objection to yet another related band, Endless Nightmare.  They're much more my speed, in that all out thrash attack of the vague Japanese and/or American variety.  Both Sangre 7"s and the Endless Nightmare 7" are in the link below.

Here

A long time ago, I did a post on the innovative and aggro hardcore band, Lesser of Two.  Well, a while back, they contacted me about how they posted some of their material for download.  Members are also in the amazing progressive metal band, Embers who are doing exciting things, and doing them often.  Check out both bands below.

Lesser of Two

Embers

Boredom and Disease

One of my top genres for summertime listening is good ol' dirty sludge.  Maybe it's the way it syncs with the pace of life; maybe it's my increased alcohol consumption.  In any case, NC's Seven Foot Spleen seemed right to post, but then again, I think anytime is a good time for them.  While the guitar tuneage and much of the pacing reeks of sludge, SFS are not locked into one mode, and like some of the best moments from Eyehategod and Mange, they often floor it to hardcore speeds.  Whether born from indecisiveness or a love for fusion and variety, the four tracks on the  "Boredom and Disease" 7" take the boredom right out of the title.  This genre and tempo crossover would continue in some members' next band, Hanging Rotten, which will be the subject of a future post.  Crusties, grinders, and hardcore kids alike should dig these guys, and for extra poops, I'm throwing in the band's split with Aussie hardcore madmen, Gacy's Place.

Download Seven Foot Spleen "Boredom and Disease" 7" (Fuck Inane Records, 1996) & the Seven Foot Spleen/Gacy's Place Split 7" (Spiral Objective Records, 1997)

Unsavory Secret Cloaked in Mystery

With tracks as long and complex as the life cycle of its namesake, Hellgrammite amble, trod, and ravage through mindscapes... well, unsavory, secret, and mysterious.  And, not unlike the fungus of the opening track's title, each of the four compositions on the "II" cassette are like deadly spores infecting the listener's brain, splitting sword-like through the cranium, revealing the tangled bramble-patch of the mind's sense of pleasure, euphoria, pain, and fear.  Black metal, doom, prog... these are all comfortable reference points, but like all art/music, it's not just what is present that matters, but the spaces between.  Whether those spaces take the form of bass-heavy drones, or echoey psychedelia, the violent times are all the more confusing and thrilling by contrast.  Hellgrammite is brought to you by one half of Same-Sex Dictator, and members of Forest Friends and ...Wind Swept Planes... The "II" tape is (possibly) available from End Theory Records, or contact the band.

Hellgrammite "II" Cassette (digital rips... 320)

** Special thanks to Justin for hooking up the tape and the WAV files (and for the awesome drumming)!

Vicious Pleasures

Since I don't go to shows much anymore, grabbing random demos and getting pleasantly blown away has replaced the excitement of discovering bands the more preferred way (live).  Although places like bandcamp remove some of the mystique of the demo experience, at least the bands are getting more exposure (and bloggers get to spotlight certain bands to like-minded people... hey, maybe this blog isn't completely useless after all).  So on to the spotlight band, Vicious Pleasures, fired from that musical birth machine of Portland, Oregon.  By now we know that location doesn't necessarily mean much in this case, except for the higher potential for quality.  Therefore I'll describe VP as playing modern peace punk which reminds me of the slower-paced material from Signal Lost, minus the noodle-y guitar leads.  A formula like this leaves the vocalist exposed and vulnerable, and only one with charisma like Sara can hold things together.  Her pipes and style will appeal to fans of that gutsy, rock-crossover approach put on the map by bands like Icon Gallery, Godless, and, yes, Signal Lost.  The five-track demo is not only promising, it's a great listen and has excellent sound quality for a first outing.  So that you enjoy an almost authentic demo experience, I ripped my tape copy, but you can get a free digital download from the band.

Vicious Pleasures- demo tape

Bandcamp - Free download available

Alternate cover art:

Los Pobres, Ladrones, Y Muertos

This one's not a tape, but it was at some point.  Generacion Suicida's demo is the kind of punk that could be the soundtrack to my entire summer, evoking sweaty, beery garage practices, broken up by hours of blissful idleness under the smog-enshrouded Southern California sun.  The strategy here is to appear loose and untrained, but really I think these guys are quite calculated in their artful use of rawness and simplicity.  SG bring that post-1980's LA sound, mastered by Scandinavians like The Vicious and Gorilla Angreb, back to LA with an authenticity not only of place, but of style and emotion.  I've heard the band is great to see live as well, and you can listen to a live-on-the-radio set here. The demo tape was apparently released in two sets of 50, and the 7" version posted here in one pressing of 307.

Generacion Suicida demo 7"

No Hay Futuro

The posts this week(end) are the result of me finally locating my box of recently purchased demos and other cassettes, some of which I've been wanting to post, some I haven't really had a chance to absorb yet.  The Criaturas demo falls more into the former category, as the band's 7" and LP have been giving my turn table quite the workout of late.  While the band shares members and a visual style with Deskonocidos (another recent obsession), they don't come across as dark as their cousin band.  Criaturas perhaps share something in common with another Austin band, Sacred Shock, in that they draw from an array of impressive punk/hardcore influences, but what results is something better than merely the sum of these.  The standout quality on this outing is the sense of Cold War-era paranoia, conjured by the frantic pace of the drumming and fits of noise from the guitars, and given staying power by the way Dru sustains her shrill wails and cries.  Some exciting things have been happening in Austin, and although a lot of those "things" share members, I hope other musicians will be inspired and take up arms.

Criaturas demo

You can get wav files of the tracks here.

The band's 7" can still be found here.

The LP is available in many places, but was released by Trabuc Records, Spain.

Are You Bonescratch?

The month of May almost beat this blog(ger) to death, and June has thus far been a time of recovery.  The rest of this and next month should be much more productive, but as usual, no promises.  For this comeback post I have a handful of releases from a displaced spirit, or a response perhaps to an Ebullition/Old Glory/Gravity Records catalog sent in a bottle across the Pacific.  Bonescratch is one of the few proofs that that style of hardcore crept its way to Japan before the end of the decade that spawned it.  If you're thinking Merel, Angel Hair, Assfactor 4, and End of the Line, then we are speaking the same language.  If not, prepare your ears for their first sputtered morphemes from the lexicon of nineties entropy: frustration and angst in both form and content, followed to their logical end-- complete dissolution.  To my knowledge, the folder linked below has all of band's releases, minus comp. appearances.

Bonescratch 
"Last Words Gone" 12" (Bloodsucker Records, 1998)
Sawpit/Bonescratch split 7" (Vernacular Records, 1998)
Bonescratch/In/humanity split 7" (H:G Fact, 199?)
"Diaglam" CD (H:G Fact, 1996)

Atolls and Serial Killers Part II

The time has come to rehash the surliest and burliest metallic hardcore of the nineties.  Two factors prompted this (yet another) Enewetak post: a request for a re-up, and a long ago kick-down of some rarities, compliments of a mysterious stranger.  The first link below includes re-rips of the band's "Easyrider Sessions Vol. 1" 7" and 8 previously unposted tracks including a Guns n' Roses cover and another recording of "Deadbird" among other raw and nasty numbers.  Dirty sludge twists around chunky mosh in this JG Ballard-like collision of tissue and metal that always sends me reeling.

Enewetak- "Easyrider Sessions Vol. 1" and rarities

It has come to my attention that the Enewetak/Unruh split 7" link died, so here is a refresher:

Here

Masquerading in a Failing World

Here we have another situation where a commenter has helped me with my procrastination problem.  I've been sitting on this Calloused post for months now, and with all of the Minneapolitan madness of recent posts, now is the perfect time.  As mentioned previously, Minneapolis has produced an enviable number of great crusty hardcore bands, many of which escape notice outside of that area.  Calloused may unfortunately be one of these bands. They wowed me on their now classic split LP with Shitlist, and as with any band this uncompromising, their other releases are no let down.  Posted today are the band's final 7" and "The Masquerade" 12" (the tracks from this one I believe also appeared on the CD version of the Shitlist split). Calloused is of interest to any hardcore nut who can appreciate the musical benefits of repetitive cranial trauma, but also welcome a touch of sadness thrown in for complexity and a sense of tragic resolution.

Calloused - "Still Failing World "7" (Sin Fronteras, 2003) and "The Masquerade" 12" (Fired Up!, 2002)

The Darkness Revisited

In wading through the bone heap of dark and obscure hardcore that this blog has become over the years, it's hard not to stumble over a few relics that could use a bit more polishing, or which deserve some further exposure befitting their hallowed place (at least in my world).  The records you see above and below are getting the treatment today due to previous ripping issues, such as low bit rate (Zero Hour),  a turn table apparently on meth (Asebia- thanks Mikexxx for pointing it out), low volume (Nux Vomica), or a barely-attached needle (Ambulance).  Obviously, I felt they were worthy of doing this all over again, and I can't recommend these bands enough if they are new to you.  We begin with Zero Hour, who became one of my all time favorite bands on the strength of their 7" alone way back in 1995.  I still can't listen to these four songs without feeling like I've been nailed in the chest by a flying hobo sack of wisdom and emotion.  This is the EP's third and probably last appearance on this blog, the first being almost five years ago.

The folder also has re-ripped versions of the band's excellent tracks from the split LP with Apeface.

Zero Hour Tracks

Original Post

Asebia was incredible, dark, metallic Scandi-thrash from Denmark.

"Face of Civilization" LP

Previous Post





Nux Vomica have former members of Wake Up On Fire, and are now based in Portland.  Their fantastic debut always kills me.

The Uninspired 7"

Original Post

Ambulance didn't last long with this line-up, sadly, but they managed to put out one unrelenting, long-playing manifesto of Swedish gloom and despair.  This was the last record I ripped/played before my last needle broke off the cartridge.  I should have re-ripped this long ago...
                                                "The End of Our Time" LP

                                                            Original Post

A Very Special Brew

Whether you're of the opinion that Axegrinder was derivative or just happened to be doing similar things at the same time as other early UK crusties, you can't deny their place in the 'evilution' of the genre.  I for one have thoroughly reveled in their savage and methodical torments since discovering them for myself about a decade ago.  "Grind the Enemy" was Axegrinder's raw punisher of a demo released before their opus, "Rise of the Serpent Men;" but the rips I've been stringing along for years were a bit lacking. Now that I think of it, I probably could have found better rips if I was more persistent.   But, enter the (Italian?) bootleg operation, Pelvic Alee, who got it in their minds to release the demo on LP recently.  When this arrived at my doorstep, I was quite the giddy mess-- so much so that I decided to rip it.  The "label' did a quality job all around from the sound (keep in mind this is a 26 year old punk demo), to the covers, to the insert which includes lyrics and a biography of the band.  Check it out; I don't know if the quality is any better than what you have, but I wouldn't be much of a host if I didn't share.

Axegrinder "Grind the Enemy" demo, unofficial LP release

Wires of Storm and Song

I hope the reader will forgive my ADD by springtime proxy that has kept me away from this blog for so long. I hope s/he will also forgive this brief break from crusty hardcore to allow us to revel in a band which I always associate with spring, and not only because they are so obviously influenced by Rites of Spring. The Shivering may have artistic roots in DC/Maryland (ie. The Hated), but there is something all too Californian about them (Burlingame to be exact). The sap-risen angst of these youths pours out in April torrents of awakening and transformation, and always with that stabbing twinge of sadness, perhaps due to the overwhelming grandness of the splendor surrounding them, but with such little time and such paltry senses with which to take it all in. A noisier and more aggressive Rites of Spring is as good a start as any in describing The Shivering (or Bullets In, if you've heard of them), but their early work did garner at least one Jawbreaker comparison (merely a genre reference point). The link below offers their CD, two 7"s, and a 10".

The Shivering

"Behind Broken Eyes" CD (No! Records, 2000)

"To the Ground" 10" (Council, Into the Hurricane, and Owsla Records, 2002)

"Wires of Storm and Song" 7" (Council Records, 2002)

"Brand the Lion's Mouth" 7" (Council, Ahoalton, and Into the Hurricane Records, 2003)

No Beer in Heaven

With such a shit week, it's great being a hardcore fan, where any record I put on brings instant commiseration, or at least makes me feel grateful I live in a place that hasn't been annihilated by some kind of holocaust, or been completely raped of basic human rights, like the right to drink beer. Staying with the theme of Profane Existence related bands and/or Midwest crusties, this post concerns Path of Destruction and Provoked, but is a little heavy on the Provoked side. These lager-quaffers shared one hell of a priceless split, which I'm linking below along with both of Provoked's LPs. POD is a brilliant blend of Portland and Minneapolis ingredients with Japanese icing, while Provoked venture into darker terrain like their predecessors Unhinged, or their contemporaries, Schifosi (but maybe a little snottier, like their antecedents, Detonate).

Path of Destruction/Provoked Split 7" (Self-Released, 2002?)

Provoked- "Infant in the Womb of Warfare" LP (Profane Existence, 2003)

Provoked- "Prepare for the Cold" LP (Profane Existence, 2005)

Cast Aside Your Chains and Dance

It appears that another crime against humanity has been committed: the Kakistocracy LP remains out of print. When I picked up my copy around 2006, it was a revelation. A hardcore band could in fact be politically charged, devastating, intelligent, moody, modern, even a bit polished in their production, without succumbing to the pitfalls of pretense or stigma of categories. While these well-read anarchists raise the hairs on your neck, they simultaneously raze the rickety foundations of our masters' illusions-- at once with the wrenching dissonance of their chords, taken together with their words inspired, and at times directly lifted, from Goldman and Berkman. The outpouring of idealism, aggression, frustration, and perseverance is almost too much to take in one listening, but it can be worked up to one side at a time. The band has several other smaller releases, my favorites of which are their last 7" and their split with Nux Vomica. There have been a couple of rumors bandied about as well, one involving a split LP with Chronicle A/D, the other promising a second LP. I've given up on the first, and eagerly await the second. For now, the first LP should be easy to find is such places as this.

Kakistocracy LP (@ 320 kbps)

Minimum Wage Slave Tirade

I've got another handful of random requests to fill, starting with Default's "Die With Honor" one sided 7" (sorry, I don't yet have the other EP requested). There was a time when Default 7"s were being sold for a dollar, and in one instance, I received one free with an order. What a travesty. Maybe it was because they were from Wisconsin and didn't release an LP (I don't think), but they never received their due respect. The "Complacency" comp was my first exposure, and those 44 seconds of gonzo crustcore made them standouts even among the honorable company they were in. "Die With Honor" thankfully continues along these lines, burning with such intense fervor that the tracks disintegrate shortly after starting. The impression is lasting, though, due in part to some flourishes in the songwriting, but mostly due to the tornado-like ass-kicking they deliver.

I got a request a while back for the first Scorned 7", and why not? Scorned is one surly political hardcore ensemble with a scary guitar sound. Being a pretty raw and rough outing, I would maybe not recommend this EP for the uninitiated. After listening to either their LP, split 7", or more recent 7", the first one can be a lot of fun, if fun includes the hardcore equivalent of a jackhammer and a chainsaw trying to drown out the shouts of an angry neighbor. Scorned is another in probably a long line of mid western bands that deserve way more attention, so give 'em a shot.

I was going to post the "Double Crossed" 7" by feisty Texans, Manchurian Candidates, but then I remembered that Mike included it in his post of the LP. For now, we'll just have to settle for some comp tracks until I track down their other 7" and split 7" (which I thought I still had...). Two tracks were re-ripped from the "El Guapo" comp ("Blind Lives" is still my favorite) and the other comes from "Reality Part 4" (a much more metal manifestation of the band).

Default, Scorned, Manchurian Candidates

Amber Are These Days

Institute first blipped on my radar a few years ago during a random search for Damad, but this post can be credited to eastcobb for finally getting me to upload the goods. Institute materialized from the same vapors as Damad, Kylesa, Karst, etc., but opted for a more expansive sound. The same dark universe is seen tinted through colder, slightly industrial eyes, kindred spirits of which might include early Counterblast, In Nomine Christi, and Christdriver. The voice samples and noise effects add a nice layer to the mix, but for me it's the hypnotic rhythms and driving metal riffs that are the real flesh. I'm posting my own rips of the one vinyl piece I own by the band ("Two Shadows") and tracks from "The Piano Player" which I downloaded from the band back when they made available both records to the public.

Institute

"Two Shadows" LP (Yellow Dog Records, 2001?) ripped @ 320.

"The Piano Player" (@ 192)

War- is the new Dis-

All request week begins, and although I have three posts planned, feel free to try and get one more in (the catch being that I have to actually own the thing already). This and the next post are requests from way back, so the guys who asked for them may very well not be around to enjoy them. We are though, and like all requests made from commenters thus far, they turned out to be splendid choices for anyone with ears for the good noise. The first is from a couple of Portland bands from the late nineties, War Machine and Yankee Wuss. The first starts off on side A and then continues leveling and blasting its way through part of side B. These guys had something to say and weren't gonna stop until it got said (except for the track "Yuppies out of Punk" which I can't locate on any of the grooves). Portland, 1990's pretty much sums up what to expect musically: D-beats until tomorrow, and simple yet catchy riffs. My knee-jerk comparison was to Excrement of War, but there are probably a ton of local references that would do just as well. In fact, members probably played in those bands too (Detestation is one I know for sure).
Yankee Wuss have overlapping political sentiments with War Machine, but the similarities end there. Their lyrics are less broad and more snide, and musically they tend to flee frantically from the cliches of their time and place. The tempos range from fast to faster, and the shouting and screaming matches this; but then there are the melodic vocals and the light guitar distortion. This might throw people off, or it might suck them in. I find it refreshing myself, like all the best aspects of Ottawa, Manchurian Candidates, and The Hated congealed into eight tracks. The light distortion is even more perplexing considering the members' connections to Atrocious Madness, Midnight, Detestation, and (to a lesser degree) Harum Scarum, but fuck type casting. This thing rages raw and pissed in its own kind of way.

War Machine/Yankee Wuss split LP (self-released (?), 1999, 300 pressed)

Peace, Love, and Soy

I'm not sure where the last two weeks went. It was like a time warp brought on by my over-scheduled life, or perhaps my head was stuck in a wormhole or some other hole. This problem and an incident involving these three EPs here, a hyper-active dog's tail, and a glass of homebrewed IPA delayed the end of my random Japanese 7" week. After some cursing and cleaning, I'm ready to finish this thing. Let's start with Breed. I've been waiting for their 7" to go out of print from TVG Records for some time, because it rocks hard and I wanted to post it. These guys played fast hardcore and, as the artwork might suggest, some occasional rock'n roll and metal inspired rhythms and riffs. All the tracks are solid as fuck, including the Minor Threat cover.

The second 7" in the folder is from Isolation and was released on the UK's Destroy Records. This band is more of a peace punk/crust core band, complete with noisy guitars and dual-gender vocal trade offs. The simple riffage is catchy and a bit thrashy on the first track. Definitely a good band to know if you're a fan of Nausea, Mankind?, etc.

Finally, we have Claysea whom I imagine have been blogged about before. The band pumps out an abusive cacophony of grinding and crusty noise punk. The deep bass offsets the over the top distortion, while the grunting vocals and galloping d-beats try to push their way through the miasma. Eternal Agony, indeed.

Get all 3 7"s here.

Scream

Himei marks the smoldering nexus of several traditions and a touch of originality. The punked-out riffs can't decide if they want to be sharply angular or endlessly danceable, and for me they don't need to. All eight of the tracks on their two EPs meet so many of my musical needs with such pleasing efficiency, not least of which is the need to hear a possessed woman recently released from her straight jacket shrieking inhibition into a cowering little mass. Or a reasonable approximation thereof. Somehow Himei make good old hardcore punk sound fresh and new again, and their vocals rival some of my all time favorites.

Both Himei 7"s (H:G Fact, 2010)... here

Turn Up Your Wick

The FE 7" archives are getting pretty chaotic, so order must be imposed with another series. This week will be Japanese 7" week-- each band featured will be as obscure as they are raging in that traditional Japanese way so many of us crave. Next week, maybe I'll head toward more a-traditional territory. Anyway, today's pick is Flux Cored Wire, and I first came to know them through the comp I'm throwing in below as a bonus. Descriptions are redundant-- listening is mandatory. That is, if high-energy hardcore with gang vocals in the manner of Deride or Assfort suits your fancy. The comp even features an Assfort "remix" and a track by Freak, who end up winning the three way split.

Flux Cored Wire 7" (MCR, 2000) & "No Way" Comp (Mangrove, 1998)

Moselle As Fuck

Coexist is another French band whose 7" I didn't quite get a chance to post last week. Rather than savoring the screamotive excellence this country exported during the nineties, you may find yourself adjusting your palate to something more like what the UK bands were doing at the time (ie. Disaffect, Sedition, One By One). As the zeitgeist dictated, bands like Coexist were proud to eschew polish and precision in favor of heart-felt idealism and a dash of free-spirited creativity. Their rollicking, hard-edged peace punk is often garnished with more ambient build-ups that have now become mainstays in many a crust band's repertoire. The rather involved packaging of the first press of the 7" also stings me with pangs of nostalgia for the DIY days of yore: not only are there multiple inserts and a nice looking booklet, but the sleeve is made from a screen printed piece of sweatshirt fleece. While this is a far from perfect little EP, its spirit somehow leaves me with a warm glow, which its flaws only seem to enhance.

Coexist 7" (Ape Records/Brassica Rapa, 1995) Link includes scans of first press booklet and covers.